Peter Schmuck grades the Orioles (Week 9)

Tom Szczerbowski / Getty Images

It has been a rocky couple of weeks for the Orioles bullpen, this past week starting with that heart-wrenching loss to the Yankees on Monday and ending with another ugly blown save by closer Jim Johnson (pictured) in Sunday's series finale against the Blue Jays. Johnson has blown four of his past five opportunities after saving a club record 35 straight, and that wasn't the only disturbing development in the bullpen. Troy Patton and Pedro Strop struggled with their command, and Strop had to be placed on the disabled list with a sore back. Darren O'Day remained steady, Tommy Hunter did a good job of picking up the slack and Steve Johnson made an important contribution upon his return from Norfolk. But overall, the numbers weren't pretty. The 'pen was 1-2 with an 8.46 ERA. Grade: D

It has been a rocky couple of weeks for the Orioles bullpen, this past week starting with that heart-wrenching loss to the Yankees on Monday and ending with another ugly blown save by closer Jim Johnson (pictured) in Sunday's series finale against the Blue Jays. Johnson has blown four of his past five opportunities after saving a club record 35 straight, and that wasn't the only disturbing development in the bullpen. Troy Patton and Pedro Strop struggled with their command, and Strop had to be placed on the disabled list with a sore back. Darren O'Day remained steady, Tommy Hunter did a good job of picking up the slack and Steve Johnson made an important contribution upon his return from Norfolk. But overall, the numbers weren't pretty. The 'pen was 1-2 with an 8.46 ERA. Grade: D (Tom Szczerbowski / Getty Images)

The Orioles have the stingiest defense in the league, which is why anybody would even raise an eyebrow over the three errors made by O's infielders over a three-game span last week. That would be the only thing possible to find fault with after a week in which they combined to bat .313 with six home runs and 15 RBIs. They also scored 16 runs, which means they played a role in 25 of the 40 runs the Orioles scored last week. Chris Davis (pictured) is peppering the bleachers again, Manny Machado is cranking out hits at a torrid pace and J.J. Hardy has been very clutch. It's almost all good. Grade: B+

The Orioles have the stingiest defense in the league, which is why anybody would even raise an eyebrow over the three errors made by O's infielders over a three-game span last week. That would be the only thing possible to find fault with after a week in which they combined to bat .313 with six home runs and 15 RBIs. They also scored 16 runs, which means they played a role in 25 of the 40 runs the Orioles scored last week. Chris Davis (pictured) is peppering the bleachers again, Manny Machado is cranking out hits at a torrid pace and J.J. Hardy has been very clutch. It's almost all good. Grade: B+ (Tom Szczerbowski / Getty Images)